Financial Aid

UW-Superior offers a variety of financial aid programs to assist students who could not otherwise afford to attend the university. During the 2008-2009 academic year approximately $19.4 million was awarded through federal, state and university sources to provide grants, loans and work to students. Specific information can be found at www.uwsuper.edu/finaid/

Financial aid is available to most students and limited to educational costs. These costs include fees, tuition, books and supplies, room and board, travel, and miscellaneous personal expenses. To receive financial aid, a student must complete the Free Application for Federal Student Aid, commonly called FAFSA, at www.fafsa.ed.gov.

April 1 is UW-Superior's priority financial aid application deadline for the following academic year. Students whose aid applications are finalized by that date will receive the first consideration for aid. Aid applications completed after April 1 will receive aid packages as funds are available. Students must re-apply each year.

To be eligible for most financial aid, students must be enrolled as a degree-seeking or teacher certification student at least half time. That's six credits per semester for undergraduates. They also must maintain satisfactory academic progress and comply with Selective Service registration requirements.

Students enrolled less than half time may be eligible for financial aid on a limited basis according to current regulations. Students should be aware that satisfactory academic progress for financial aid differs from academic standards for enrollment in the university.

Grants, scholarships and fellowships that exceed the cost of tuition, fees, books and required educational equipment and supplies are considered to be taxable income and you may be required to pay taxes on it. For additional information contact a tax advisor.

Educational Costs

These are estimated costs used by the Financial Aid Office to determine financial need for each academic year. Actual current costs are available from the UW-Superior Business Office located in Old Main, Room 206. Tuition, fees, housing and meals costs for 2008-2009:

Satisfactory Academic Progress Standard for Financial Aid

A student must maintain satisfactory academic progress toward a degree to receive financial aid, including loans. Failure to maintain satisfactory progress will result in the student being placed on probation or having his or her financial aid suspended. A student who has been suspended by the Financial Aid Office may file a petition to have his or her financial aid reinstated (see the Appeal Procedure below).

The Grade Point Average (GPA) component is the same as the requirement for academic good standing (see below). Students who are suspended due to failure to meet GPA requirements will be notified by the Registrar's Office. When academic reinstatement occurs, financial aid reinstatement will automatically occur, as it pertains to GPA.

Completion Rate

The Financial Aid Office monitors Completion Rate at the end of Summer College only for all credits attempted while at UW-Superior. The Financial Aid Office will notify students if they have not met the appropriate completion rate (described below). Those students will need to file a Petition for Financial Aid Reinstatement with the Financial Aid Office. (Note: It is possible that at the end of second semester a student may be required to file an appeal with both the Registrar's Office, due to GPA, and the Financial Aid Office, due to Completion Rate.)

Transfer students are assumed to be making satisfactory progress upon entering UW-Superior (i.e., financial aid suspension at another institution does not carry forward). However, those accepted with less than a 2.0 cumulative GPA from all previously attended institutions will be on financial aid probation.

Incompletes and withdrawals after the 10th day of the grading period will be counted as attempted credits. Remedial credits will be counted as attempted credits. Repeated courses will be counted as attempted credits as many times as the course is repeated. Example: A student repeats a three-credit class. The second grade is a passing grade. Thus, the student has attempted six credits and has earned three credits. If both attempts at the class result in two grades of F, then the student has attempted six credits and has earned zero credits.

Successful completion of a credit attempted is credit for which a grade of A, A-, B+, B, B-, C+, C, C-, D+, D, D-, P, or IP is received.

Students may receive financial aid for no more than 150 percent of the published length of the currently enrolled academic program, measured in credits. For example, a student's academic program is 120 credits. Financial aid may be received for no more than 180 credits. When pursuing a second degree, no more than 150 percent of the number of credits required to complete the second degree will be allowed. Exceptions to this rule may be made on a case-by-case basis through the appeal procedure.

The obtaining of a degree, with the exception of an associate degree, automatically reinstates the student's eligibility for financial aid.

Satisfactory Academic Progress Components

Grade Point Average standards - same as the academic standards as follows:

Academic Probation

Students are placed on academic probation whenever their:

Cumulative grade point average drops below 2.0

or

Semester grade point average is less than 1.66 regardless of the cumulative grade point average.

Students on probation must earn a 2.0 semester grade point average the following semester to remain in good standing. Once the cumulative grade point average goes to 2.0 or above, they are no longer on probation. If students fail to earn a 2.0 semester grade point average while on probation they will be suspended.

Whenever a student's semester or cumulative grade point average falls below 2.00, the student and his or her advisor will be notified before the start of the next semester. Students may want to contact their advisors before the beginning of the semester to discuss potential modifications to the next semester's schedule.

Transfer students accepted with less than a 2.00 cumulative grade point average from all previously attended institutions would be admitted on academic probation.

Suspended students readmitted by the Student Reinstatement Committee will be readmitted on academic probation.

Academic Suspension

At the end of each term the university reviews the academic records of all students. Students previously on probation will be suspended if their semester grade point average is less than 2.0.

Students suspended for failure to maintain academic good standing shall be declared ineligible to continue to enroll during any fall or spring term. Suspended students may attend classes during any summer term without being readmitted.

Completion Rate Standards
(Credits Attempted Versus Credits Earned):

Students are required to make satisfactory progress toward completion of a degree. The method used to monitor that requirement is to determine the student is earning a specified percentage of credits in which he or she was enrolled as of the 10th day of class. The appropriate percentage used depends on the grade level of the student. As the student advances from freshman to senior, it is expected that a higher percentage of credits attempted would be completed. Both credits transferred from another institution as well as credits earned at UW-Superior are used to determine the grade level of the student. This in turn determines the appropriate percentage to be applied to the cumulative credits attempted only at UW-Superior. The result is the minimum number of credits the student must complete at UW-Superior to be considered making satisfactory progress.

Suspension

Suspension will occur when any of the following, as a minimum, are not met:

Credits Attempted

Appropriate Percentage

01 - 27

60%

28 - 55

65%

56-83

70%

84 and above

75%

Graduate

66%

Probation

Students on probation are monitored at the end of each enrollment to determine whether the terms of the probation were met. If not, suspension will occur. Students who meet the conditions of probation, but who have not met the Progress Standards, will remain on probation until the minimum standards are met.

Appeal Procedure

Students who do not meet the above policy standards may be considered to be making satisfactory progress, evaluated on an individual basis, if there are mitigating circumstances including:

The death of a relative of the student (copy of the death certificate must be provided)

An injury or illness of the student

Other special circumstances

A student has the right to submit a written petition to the Student Financial Aid Review Board explaining the mitigating circumstances that prevented the student from meeting the standards of the Satisfactory Academic Progress Policy. If the first petition is denied, the student can submit a second written petition. No personal appeals are allowed, and the decision of the Student Financial Aid Review Board is final.

The Financial Aid Review Board generally meets the week before the start of classes each term. Other meetings are scheduled on an as needed basis. Students may contact the Financial Aid Office for current information on meeting times. The results from actions of the committee will be mailed to the student immediately or may be obtained by contacting the Financial Aid office the day after the meeting.

This policy is under review at the time of publication. Please visit www.uwsuper.edu/finaid for any changes.

Refunds and the "Return of Title IV Funds" Policy

When a student withdraws or is expelled from school and has been awarded federal financial aid, per federal law, a portion of that awarded aid may be required to be returned. The amount to be returned may come from the institution, the student, or a combination of the two. To determine who is responsible for returning the funds to the federal government, two calculations are necessary.

Calculation 1:

First, per the "Return of Title IV funds" formula dictated by the federal government, the Financial Aid Office will calculate the amount of financial aid awarded to the student that must be returned to the federal government by the institution and the student, if the student withdraws prior to completing 60 percent of the term. The federal formula is applicable to a student receiving a TIP grant, Pell grant, SEOG, Academic Competitiveness Grant/SMART Grant, Perkins Loan, Direct Subsidized, Direct Unsubsidized, and Direct PLUS loans. The percentage of Title IV aid to be returned is equal to the number of calendar days remaining in the semester divided by the number of calendar days in the semester. Scheduled breaks of more than four consecutive days are excluded. Once this calculation has been performed, the Financial Aid Office will notify the Cashier's Office of the amount the institution and/or student is required to return to the Title IV financial aid programs.

Calculation 2:

The Cashier's Office will then calculate the refund of institutional charges due the student per the University of Wisconsin refund policy mandated by the state.

If Calculation 1 is greater than Calculation 2, the student must pay the difference to the university and, in some cases, directly to the federal government. The Cashier's Office will notify the student of the amount owed and to whom it must be paid. If any funds are to be returned after the return of Title IV aid, they will be used to repay the following listed in priority order; state funds, UW-Superior Foundation funds, other private sources and the student. If there was an unpaid balance, then all aid sources will be repaid before any funds are returned to the student.

Administrative drops are considered classes never attended and, therefore, financial aid awards will be adjusted accordingly prior to the determination of the amounts to be returned to federal programs.

Financial aid recipients are encouraged to contact the Financial Aid Office to be advised of the impact of withdrawing from the university prior to initiating the process.

Veterans' Benefits

We are dedicated to serving the educational needs of our university's active duty veterans, guard members, reservists, and dependents of veterans.

Information and applications for federal veteran benefits may be obtained online at www.gibill.va.gov or through the Registrar's Office, Old Main Room 139 telephone 715/394-8234. Veterans leaving active duty, if not applying online, must provide UW-Superior a certified copy of their discharge papers (DD214). The county clerk's office in the county in which the student resides can make a certified copy from the original if one is needed. Reservists and National Guard veterans must provide the school with an original of DD 2384 Notice of Basic Eligibility (NOBE), and, if eligible for "kicker" monies, a copy of the kicker agreement. The commanding officer of a student's unit initiates these forms.

A new federal GI Bill has been implemented. The name of this new program is The Post 911 GI Bill (Chapter 33). This new bill is in addition to the other federal educational benefits that already exist. The Post 911 GI Bill is for veterans who served on active duty after September 10, 2001.

The Post 911 GI Bill program will provide veterans, service members and members of the National Guard and Selected Reserve with educational assistance. This assistance will generally be in the form of tuition and fees, a monthly housing allowance, and a books stipend.

Wisconsin veterans may be given a waiver of their tuition and fees if they qualify for the "Wisconsin GI Bill Program." A brochure which explains this program and includes the forms necessary to apply is available online by going to http://dva.state.wi.us, selecting the State Veteran Benefits link, and then selecting the Education Program link. This information is also available from your County Veterans Service Office.

Be aware that your Veterans Administration educational benefits should not be counted on as the only source to cover school costs.